Chapter 14: Yeah, I saw it coming from a mile away.

 

Part 1

 

3rd Person POV

 

It has been some hours, but Kuroka and Shirone had not been able to meet Nora again. As he had told her, Kuroka kept the box close to her, even when the devils that helped her to get away from the facility tried to take it away from her... she resisted. Although they only stopped when she said that she wanted to meet those people Nora mentioned, saying that she knew them. A lie she made up at that moment. But since Nora gave her those names, they were probably acquainted.

 

After that, her sister and she were taken to a devil city. And it would've been an impressive sight if only she had her mind into looking at it.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Guided to a building among many others, they entered it and saw how there were many people dressed similarly as the ones who brought them here. They were then taken to a room where there was a long table with numerous chairs around it.

 

"Please wait here for a moment before I speak with my superior about what you said."

 

Saying such a thing, the person who brought them here left... not before coming back to leave them with chocolate bars and juice.

 

...

...

 

"Nora-nya, when are you going to come here?" Kuroka muttered to herself in a lonely tone of voice.

 

She was happy that they are now away from the facility, but the happiness got halved many times as Nora was not by their side.

 

"Nee-sama, it will be ok. He was able to fulfill his promise so he will surely..." Shirone said trying to console her sister.

 

"I know-nya, but I thought we would be able to be together as soon as we left that place-nya." Kuroka weakly said.

 

For Kuroka, she had already been away from Nora for enough time.

 

"I know you miss him... I too...".Shirone muttered in a low tone of voice, but noticing what she said, Shirone tightly closed her mouth and looked away.

 

Perhaps she thought that Kuroka did not hear her slip of tongue so she did not say anything else in case she committed the same mistake.

 

Too bad, but Kuroka-onee-chan heard her.

 

Few things were able to change Kuroka's mood at the moment, and unfortunately (?) for Shirone, those words were one of them.

 

"Ohhhh!" Kuroka exclaimed, clearly excited.

 

Just from the tone, Shirone already regrets her slip (?) of the tongue just now.

 

"Hehe, I knew it-nya." Kuroka happily said as she grinned.

 

Shirone once again turned her face to another place just to avoid looking at that grinning face, although she ended staring at her sister. Even though she did not want to see her Onee-sama sad, she does not exactly enjoy when she gets enthusiastic about a topic like this as she gets carried away.

 

"You can turn your face away-nya ♪ But, I heard you-nya ♪" Kuroka muttered in a happy tone.

 

Just hearing her, Shirone felt an impulse to just leave her alone. Nonetheless, while a little annoyed at her attitude, she was a bit relieved that she was acting like usual.

 

"You probably miss heard." Shirone retorted.

 

"No-nya ♪ Don't be shy; I also like him-nya. It makes me happy that you get on friendly terms with him, although I would be even happier if the three of us could be together..." Kuroka started to speak in a merry tone, but her words lost strength when the fact that Nora was not with them came up again.

 

It was a little too much for Shirone to keep the happy mood.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Minutes went by or perhaps hours. For the Nekomata sisters, it was not easy to tell how much time they had spent there waiting, and finally, after that entire wait, there was a knock on the door of the room they were in. Just after that, the door opened, and two people came into the room, one man with crimson hair, followed by a woman with silver hair.

 

"Hmmm, hello there. I came as I heard that a nekomata asked for me, but you are not whom I was expecting." The crimson-haired man said with a frown.

 

"Sirzechs-sama, when I gave you the report it clearly stated that the individual was a young female..." The silver-haired woman rebuked with no change of expression.

 

"Well, you say that, but you were the one who practically brought me here to confirm that." The crimson-haired man, Sirzechs, replied with a wry smile.

 

At those words, the silver-haired woman flinched a little.

 

"That is just because Ojou-sama is very worried..." The silver-haired woman spoke as the mask with no expressions on her face started to break.

 

At the side, Kuroka and Shirone could only blink in confusion at those strangers' conversation.

 

*Cough*

 

Noticing the strange looks they were receiving, the man awkwardly coughed before speaking to the two who were already in the room.

 

"I think that there is a need to introduce myself, I am one of the four Maou, Sirzechs. Besides me, this is Grayfia, my wif-ouch *cough* my Queen. Hey, I don't think it matters if I joke about it. Many people jokingly call us that." Sirzechs complained to Grayfia who had pinched his side mid-word.

 

"It seems you forgot that to joke, you need to be alive. Perhaps, I should speak with her about your joking streak? She would be more than happy to remain that she is your wife and your only wife, although you could end as a divorced man if you anger her too much so let me advise you against that as your Queen" Grayfia muttered with a smile that looked anything but friendly.

 

"I am technically your boss, so please don't kill me, and for the love of... don't tell her that, I don't want to sleep on the couch again. *Sigh* Anyways, you two. We already introduced ourselves. I think it should be your turn now. Also... there are a few questions I would like to make." Sirzechs sighed and his tone became serious all of sudden.

 

Slightly flinching at the change of atmosphere that the man gave, Kuroka and Shirone didn't answer immediately.

 

*Gulp*

 

Recovering faster, and considering her duty as a big sister, Kuroka spoke.

 

"I am Kuroka-nya, and this is Shirone-nya. We are sisters-nya... Uhmmm, I know that you have questions, but we also have things we want to ask-nya. Do you know where is the child that was with us before they brought us here? He is a Nekomata like us-nya... Can you tell me? Please? Where is Nora-nya?" Kuroka inquired in a sad tone.

 

At those words, Sirzechs and Grayfia exchanged a look, and then both bitterly smiled.

 

"Actually, that was what we were planning to ask you, as soon as someone used the name of my family and my queen's name, and not to mention... my name. I thought it was that child. He is someone who we have been looking for for months, Nora Shiki. However, the report said that it was a black-haired female Nekomata that called for us... so I had to see this in person. Can you tell me how the two of you know about him?" Sirzechs questioned.

 

This time, Kuroka and Shirone shared a glance, and they both nodded at each other.

 

"Well... It's like this..." Kuroka started to explain.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Having just finished speaking, Kuroka was a little thirsty, but as juice was timely put in from of her by Grayfia, she drank it.

 

No one in the room spoke a word, Sirzechs and Grayfia both had a frown on their face.

 

After pondering for a while longer, Sirzechs spoke.

 

"That is something quite difficult to believe if it wasn't for the reports of the patrols. Yet, there is nothing on Nora-kun huh. It's somehow fishy. Is that everything? From what you have just told me, the three of you spend a good amount of time together. Did he tell you anything else?" Sirzechs asked.

 

Hesitating for a moment, Kuroka tightly gripped what was held on her lap, the box that Nora gave her.

 

"He left me with this when we escaped..." Kuroka replied as she handed the box to Grayfia who was already beside her to take it.

 

After confirming the contents of the box, Grayfia handed it to Sirzechs who also inspected the contents.

 

"I guess this confirms that Nora-kun was there. The leader of the Youkais told us that he carried this with him before suddenly losing the signal. Hmmm, as for the other things... cat-shaped hair clips? And what is this thing? Grayfia, send this to Ajuka. Tell him that I need a favor and if he could take a look at these things now, it would be a big help. I doubt that these things were randomly put in here by that child..." Sirzechs muttered as pondered about what he just found inside the box.

 

Grayfia took the box back and was about to leave when-

 

"Oh, I almost forgot. Let Serafall know about this too, inform her yourself. She has been cooperating in the search too so it would be a good idea to tell her now that we got a clue where Nora-kun has been." Sirzechs suggested.

 

All that Kuroka could do was to watch as these two people spoke about this and that, even if a few names came up, she was not able to understand who those people were or how they were related to Nora, but she understood that they were trying to help him, and that put her at ease. Well, only slightly as she still wanted to reunite with Nora.

 

"Onee-sama, you see? It is as Nora said, everything will be alright so don't be sad..." Shirone used this opportunity to lift her big sister's mood, although she spoke softly as to not be heard by the other devils in the room.

 

Kuroka nodded at her little sister. She was happy that she was speaking more, even if it only was to lift her mood, no, it made her happy that she did it because of that.

 

"Now then, I think that you two have limited choices you can make at this point. You can both stay here and wait for Nora-kun to be found, although I wouldn't recommend it. There are many people interested in what happened at that place. So I offer you to take you to my family's manor and wait for him there." Sirzechs offered as he had already finished talking with Grayfia.

 

It was obvious for the Maou, that if he left the two on their own, there would be many people who would try to reach for them.

 

The incident this time was not made public, but there were probably many nobles families that had their methods to find out that something had happened even before it was properly dealt with.

 

From the initial report, that facility was involved in illegal experiments, and while he would like to believe otherwise, many children were used as subjects.

 

Various individuals would be interested in putting their hands on these children. A proper follow-up was necessary. However, seeing how the girls in front of him were familiar with Nora, he thought that he should offer them preferential treatment.

 

Sirzechs had an idea that the box given by Nora was something important, and handing it to them had to be for a particular reason, even leaving that token inside. So that is why he will take them under his wing or rather, the Gremory's wing, for now.

 

"...I don't know-nya. Staying here does not sound that good, but I am not sure if I want to go with you, Maou-sama? I just want to meet Nora-nya." Kuroka replied after thinking for a moment.

 

Even when Nora had told them to call these people, Kuroka still found it hard to just accept to be taken somewhere else after finally escaping the facility.

 

"You don't have to add '-sama' to my title. As for the other thing, I can guarantee that you will be treated well, you won't be lonely either as you can play with my little sister. She is friends with Nora-kun too." Sirzechs tried to kindly convince them.

 

Hesitating for a moment, Kuroka spoke again.

 

"A friend-nya?" Kuroka asked, slightly curious.

 

Taking her interest as an opportunity to convince her, Sirzechs continued.

 

"Yes, they met years ago so they are very good friends." Sirzechs replied.

 

It was not technically a lie so everything was ok, although Sirzechs would probably be reproached by Grayfia later after she heard the method he used.

 

"Hmmm, I don't know-nya." Kuroka was still not fully convinced.

 

"...There will be plenty of food and sweets too." Sirzechs used his last card.

 

"Onee-sama... I think we should go." Shirone suddenly said in a decisive tone of voice.

 

Thinking about what was probably that convinced her little sister, Kuroka smiled wryly.

 

"Ok-nya.... We will go-nya." Kuroka spoke at last.

 

At that moment, Sirzechs felt that the little sister was the person who he should've tried to convince since the beginning, as he probably would've saved some time.

 

Part 2

 

MC's POV

 

I expected things to possibly go this way, but to think that I would end up behind the bars.

 

Nora Shiki, around 8 (?) years old... already in jail.

 

Nope, I don't think I can laugh at that.

 

...

...

...

 

 

My appearance seemed to have brought me some troubles; I think that being covered in blood while wearing a patient's garb is not exactly something that many would ignore.

 

I was separated from Kuroka-chan and Shirone-chan as soon as we managed to escape.

 

Apparently, following the testimony coming from some of Naberius' men, I was pointed to be a dangerous and highly aggressive individual, which was why I was taken to a different place from the girls... or so I was told, but something smelled fishy.

 

I felt that some of those devils were not there for the same motives that the ones who came to take care of helping the captured people. I even overheard them saying how they wanted to destroy evidence of the involvement of some devils.

 

Too bad, I was not able to hear the whole conversation. I wonder if they were there to only destroy evidence... if they tried to collect Naberius' research data, then it would’ve been hilarious as I had already taken what I thought was useful and gave it to Kuroka-chan and Shirone-chan after putting it in the box.

 

I had taken the opportunity to recover the cat-shaped hair clips that Shirone-chan used in the Canon... which I found by pure coincidence. I mostly took it as it was probably the only memento she got from her parents, even if they were like the Canon and carried all the research data of what was done to Kuroka-chan, it wouldn't matter too much to me, although it would be good proof in the case that some guy wanted to pin something on her.

 

Well, I also took something that looked like a USB flash drive from the safe and put it in there, the same goes for the couple of those that Naberius had on his body.

 

Hopefully, they become useful later.

 

Well, I am currently behind bars so I doubt that they will be useful right now.

 

I just wonder how long will I be here. It was a somewhat long travel, where they took me to a building where they bathed me (against my will) and made me wear some really old school prisoner's outfit. Black and white stripes covered the damned overall.

 

Well, I think that it could've been worse. I wish they finish doing their investigation quickly. They left me here until they confirmed some stuff.

 

...

...

...

 

This is not looking good; they just put me a collar that works the same as the restrains from Naberius.

 

They led me out of the office (I resisted) and was put in a vehicle.

 

...

...

...

 

No one hears my words no matter how much I shout or yell... I only got hit as a result.

 

The vehicle stopped at one place that no matter how you looked at it... seems like a prison. Well, it does not look that big so it could've been worse.

 

...

...

...

 

Forget my earlier words.

 

What the heck is wrong with these people and their damned underground facilities? This prison got many floors under the ground level.

 

I am extremely worried. Were those two taken here like me? No, these guys just pinned some charges at me (which I can't really deny, I mean, Arson, Murder, and Assault are things I kind of did so). I made sure to not allow Kuroka-chan to fight or get involved in anything just to make sure that she never becomes a criminal, although I ended up becoming one myself.

 

Oh, the irony.

 

*Sigh*

 

...

...

...

 

I took the liberty of taking a peek around with my Clairvoyance, and from what I could see, the prison seems to be divided into four major areas. Each is separated by several floors in between.

 

I wonder what this is about.

 

Besides that, I found this place to be similar to prisons from my old world... well, without the non-humans prisoners of course.

 

There are many kinds of prisoners, and the lower you go, the lesser there are.

 

It feels that it is because-

 

...

... ...

 

 

Trying to ask or speak only made them hit me in response, the same as resisting so I only made sure to learn as much as I could from the situation.

 

I was not exactly calm about this, but it is not time to lose my head. No matter how I look at this, it is not a mistake or an equivocation.

 

The guys who brought me here are hardly speaking. Exchanging a few words with the wardens at the entrance, they just entered the prison with me in tow, although I got a few curious glances, no one said a word about me being here. Well, I think I saw some people who were about to say something before being scolded by their superiors.

 

...

...

...

 

I kept being led further and further from the surface. The only way to move between floors being elevators that were located on different ends from each floor, and they only worked to connect one floor to another.

 

Thanks to that, I was able to take a closer look without using my ability at the whole place.

 

Although what picked my interest was how this place keeps criminals from different races and not only devils. Considering how many noble houses in the Canon believed in devil supremacy, I expected to be lesser if not any kind of criminals from another race.

 

Fallen angels, devils, even humans... youkais from different shapes and sizes. Truly impressive, and scary. Those guys don't look friendly at all.

 

I wonder, how long will I have to be here?

 

...

...

...

 

From a certain point downwards, it became more difficult to even walk, putting aside the damned collar that worked as a restrain for my Ki. Just stepping onto this new floor, I started to feel somewhat drained of energy. It was a slow process, but I certainly felt it.

 

It was not simply just me that imagined it. The effect was real. I could observe how the prisoners from this floor were less active than the ones from the previous floors.

 

They look idler; you could even call them haggard.

 

How interesting, and ruthless of them.

 

Those Maous were always portrayed as peace-loving guys, but they at least kept the criminals in check. Well, now I am suffering from that though.

 

...

...

...

 

To not get bored, I kept making a map of the layout of this place in my mind. Although it is lacking compared to the one I made at Naberius' facility since I had much more time to look at every bit and cranny from that place.

 

Each floor seemed to be divided further into four areas, and each area has several rooms that kept the prisoners locked. The doors are not open in bars style, but instead, the door only has a small glass view to see from the outside. It made me remember that damned facility somehow.

 

They are separated by wide hallways, and the doors are not all closed, allowing free movement to the prisoners, although there were wardens everywhere, and from what I could see, security cameras as well. It made me wonder why they are not using magic to observe them until I remembered the draining effect, but who cares.

 

...

...

...

 

I have been confirming this as they lead me downwards, but each area seems to keep different kinds of criminals. Without minding the races, I noticed how some of the prisoners have a better semblance than others, and while there are really thin prisoners bordering the unhealthy, I could also see very fat guys that could use a diet or two. Those people kind of look arrogant even though they are here... a mocking grin was directed at me more than once, or just an annoyed look.

 

I kind of feel that it has something to do with their social status, but I can only speculate at this point.

 

...

...

...

 

After walking at such a slow pace for long, and being slightly drained from the walk around these strange floors. The wardens just left me in an empty room without saying another word.

 

I scratched my head in confusion at my situation, but I was at least thankful that I had no roommates. The guys from this area look beyond unfriendly.

 

...

...

...

 

"Stop right there, you piece of sh*t!!!!"

 

"Catch that runt."

 

"Don't let him escape."

 

No, just let me go.

 

Complaining in my head, I ran as fast as my legs allowed me to.

 

It was just a few minutes after being left here and I was already running away.

 

I know I said that these guys looked unfriendly, but this is too much. Picking a fight with me since I was new is beyond absurd. I am not going to survive if they give me a beating now, those guys won't be holding back after all.

 

"It's your entire fault, you let him go!"

 

"No, it was you!"

 

"No, it w-"

 

"SHUT UP! YOU BOTH SCR*WED IT!"

 

Hearing them fight from behind me, I was beginning to get tired. This floor is affecting me more than I thought.

 

Suddenly, a door from one of the cells opened, and a hand extended from inside catching the helm of my clothes.

 

"Hey, w-" I tried to yell but another hand was put on my mouth to seal my voice.

 

I was dragged inside the room, and the door closed.

 

...

...

...

 

Well, this is awkward.

 

After being dragged inside the room, I expected another prisoner to attack me so I resisted by kicking and hitting whatever I could.

 

I was indeed able to hit and kick the person who dragged me. It’s just… he apparently meant no harm to me, as he wanted to save me from those guys.

 

A-w-k-w-a-r-d.

 

"Eh... Sorry about that." I honestly apologized.

 

Even though I can't just trust an individual that 'happened to help me just when I needed it', it would be impolite to act rudely to him after getting saved.

 

"Don't mind it, kid..." The individual said who saved me as he rubbed the places I hit him, which were mostly the face and chest.

 

Observing the person, I noted that this guy is a human and a rather aged person at that. With a haggard and disheveled face full of wrinkles, he had long white hair and brown eyes. His height was not very tall, reaching 160 or 161cm perhaps. One thing I could not help but notice is that he gave the atmosphere of someone crafty. It is difficult to explain as it is more a feeling than anything else.

 

"Thanks for your help by the way..." I did not forget to thank him.

 

"Sure, sure... But it is very odd to see such a small child roaming around in this place. You must've pissed off someone very important to be sent here." The old man muttered as he took a seat on his (?) bed.

 

Me? When did I do such a thing?

 

"You can't be serious; there is no way I could've done that." I exclaimed indignantly.

 

"Those guys usually use methods like these to get rid of people that they want to make disappear but it would be difficult to do so." The old man explained.

 

Oh, that reminds me that I kinda wrecked that facility a little, but who would...? Hmm. I didn't think too much about the consequences of my actions, or rather, I did not expect them to come and bite me so soon.

 

It is terribly absurd to assume that the sicko was working alone. The scale of the operation where you kidnap children, make experiments and evade the law is not something that just anyone can do. Everything reeks of hidden collaborators, but the question is who. I really have no clue.

 

"Let's say that it is as you say. Wouldn't the actual good guys among the devil's find out about this?" I asked something I was wondering.

 

"Do you think they check every single criminal that gets locked in a prison? It is because they entrust it to 'capable and reliable' people (devils) that they trust that everything is running perfectly fine. No one cares if there is one more criminal or one less, it is that simple. With the ones managing this place practically bought with money or women, they can do pretty much everything. Even until not long ago, there was a rumor that prisoners were being brought out, but it stayed like that, as rumors." The old man replied.

 

Ah, ahhh, ahhhhh. This is giving me a headache. What a sh*tty situation.

 

I don't even know where to retort here.

 

"Well, that is how it is; the world is not a sweet or kind place. Even I was brought here under charges like espionage and theft, but there was never evidence or even a trial. They just knocked on my door one day. One second I was preparing for breakfast, the next second I was eating breakfast... in jail." the old man muttered in a bitter tone.

 

Hmm?

 

"Were you actually guilty of all that?" I asked as I took a seat on the floor, rather far from the old man.

 

I was trying to recover the fastest I could, just from the running I did before, I was exhausted.

 

"Oh......... No comment." The old man replied grinning foolishly.

 

It actually made me want to hit him. This guy-

 

"Aren't you here because you actually committed a crime? Why were you talking like you are a victim here?" I inquired.

 

I don't get this guy.

 

"It is true that there was no evidence against me. I truly left nothing behind that they could use to trace me. I was just out here out of the blue, but don't worry kid, no need to be scared of me because I did a few bad things. I am actually rather awesome, you know. I am like those spies on the movies." The old man spoke in a cheerful tone.

 

Did I already say that I don't get this guy? Because I don't.

 

"You are really alike, even to the point where you let yourself get caught." I said.

 

"Hey, I am really good in my craft, I just don't have anything here but if I get my gadgets back, I could even show you to change your appearance and no one will know that it is you." The old man tried to convince me.

 

One word can overcome whatever he does with his gadgets... magic.

 

"Not like I care, besides... Wouldn't magic do the trick?" I asked.

 

I mean, this is a world where supernatural beings are everywhere.

You are reading story Highschool DxD: A new opportunity at novel35.com

 

"*Tsk* *Tsk* Magic this, magic that. You, supernatural creatures, are always using that, but let me ask you. Magic might help you to change your appearance, however, is that enough to foul others? You require more than that. Your appearance, your voice, even the gestures down to the tiniest details, I reckon that magic won't be able to help you with all that. Kid, don't underestimate humans' craft because they are not magical. Your magic requires more than sheer quantity to be useful." The old man explained in a rather rough tone of voice.

 

"Oh, but I can't use magic though..." I shrugged my shoulders.

 

It was not my intention to trigger the switch this guy had regarding his abilities; it was just a simple question.

 

"Then, why the heck did you mention magic just now?" The old man inquired more annoyed than when he complained about magic.

 

"Curiosity..." I replied while shrugging my shoulders once again.

 

"Don't you know that curiosity killed the cat?" The old man said as he looked at my ears and tails.

 

I know that he is hinting at something here, but it is seriously not funny. So instead of answering, I just stared at him listlessly.

 

He seemed to get that I did not find amusing his comment because he just scratched his head with a troubled look.

 

"*Sigh* ok, ok... I might've spoken a bit too much since I hardly speak with other people." The old man muttered under his breath.

 

Do they avoid him because of his talking habits?

 

As rude as my thoughts were, they were wrong.

 

"It is not a very good idea to wander around here. The wardens will not move to protect other prisoners from each other. Unless they try to do something to the prison, or they do something cataloged as 'escaping', they will just stare at you as you get wrecked." The old man explained.

 

That does not sound like good news.

 

Then again, being here is already very bad for me.

 

"Then, you are here because you pissed off someone huh..." I muttered.

 

It would be too much of a coincidence that we both bothered the same guy so there is the possibility that many people (devils) are involved in this kind of action. To what extent can they influence certain matters such as this is not clear yet.

 

"So you are, by the way, what kind of stuff did they pin on you before bringing you here?" The old man asked.

 

Hmmm, not like it matters if he knows or not.

 

"Murder, assault, theft, and arson, yeah." I replied while counting with my fingers.

 

Not exactly a lie if I think about it.

 

The old man just stared at me with a weird expression as I said that.

 

"You are not just some random kid, huh, my guts were right." The old man murmured but I was still able to hear him. I still ignored it though.

 

"Hey, why did you exactly save me? I doubt you did it out of the kindness of your heart. My apologies, but you don't look that type." I asked while trying to change the subject.

 

"No particular reason is what I was going to say, but you are not buying that. There is no such a deeper reason though. I was just following my instincts here, you know, my gut. They were telling me that it would be good for me to give you a hand." The old man replied rather proudly.

 

No, no, no matter how you look at it.

 

"Didn't your guts help when you were about to get caught? If they are that good, why are you here?" I inquired.

 

"It is just a faint feeling you get, not a guidebook with all the right answers, they have helped me many times before and they are hardly wrong." The old man replied to my slight jab.

 

Yeah, it still sounds unreliable.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Waiting for a while in silence, I noticed that the draining effects had disappeared at some point, allowing me a swift recovery.

 

"Today's draining ended earlier huh..." The old man muttered he seemed to have noticed the same thing as me.

 

"What is that exactly?" I asked.

 

"Oh, that? You were feeling it right? It drains our strength to keep us in check. Many mystical creatures would be able to break havoc even with this collar on them. It is just insurance to maintain a 'peaceful' environment. Although I am not sure what they do exactly with the energy that is drained. No matter if it's magic power, demonic power, Ki, or whatever you use, they suck that out of you..." The old man answered.

 

*Click*

 

Such a sound was suddenly heard after the old man had spoken.

 

I froze where I was standing, the same happened to the old man.

 

"Hey... Does this also happen often too?" I asked as I moved my hand to my neck.

 

Touching my now free neck, I stared at the floor where the collar had fallen at some point during my surprise.

 

"No, no, no, there is no way that this happens often. They never take these off." The old man retorted with a dumbfounded face.

 

I had probably the same face as well.

 

"Then, what is this?" I asked while pointing at the fallen collar.

 

Something just occurred to me but-

 

"Hey, why do you think I would know? This is the first time it has happened. At least from the time I was put in here until now, it has been like that." The old man spoke as he stood up and walked to the door.

 

Suddenly, the lights went off quickly and then came back just as fast, but there was something different, a slight red tinge was mixed with them this time.

 

*Alarm sound*

 

An alarm was heard along with-

 

"This is not a drill, I repeat, this not a drill. Areas 1 and 3 from the middle division have been taken over by the prisoners. All personal on-site, be careful."

 

A voice was heard from what I believe were loudspeakers located on the hallways, which resounded loudly.

 

Ok, I did not want to accept it, but there seems to be a slight riot going on.

 

I moved to the door and standing on my tiptoes (and shoving aside the old man), I observed how outside was chaos.

 

I managed to see how a few wardens were fighting some prisoners, and how the prisoners were putting a resistance.

 

From how I see it, those guys might last for now, but that was only because not many prisoners have joined the fray. This will turn into a bloodbath soon.

 

Oh, jeez. I have a stroke of terrible luck.

 

I am considering becoming a hikikomori if I get out of this one alive.

 

Part 3

 

Sirzechs' POV

 

Sirzechs was having a headache right now.

 

He has not been able to get much from the investigation of that facility. Many of the documents were destroyed by the time his trusted subordinates arrived on site. It is bothersome that he was not able to get more than a bit of information on some experiments, but the specifics were not 'readable'.

 

It is not difficult to figure out that someone destroyed them intending to hide what happened there. Even a few of the captured people have been 'silenced' in what he believes is intent to avoid any leak of information.

 

Even when all the might he has in a fight, it basically means nothing when the opponent uses politics and underhanded tricks to get what they want.

 

*Sigh*

 

"This is why I wanted a simpler life and not some Maou title..." Sirzechs muttered to himself.

 

Alone in his office, he had just ordered to strengthen the security on any captured individual from the facility to avoid any more cases where they are found dead.

 

While it did not happen as often nowadays, assassination has been used since long ago in the devil society to take care of some problems, and it was hard to trace when it started.

 

Nonetheless, this case was bigger than he initially thought.

 

Many noble houses must be involved if they are being this aggressive at getting rid of the possible links that could be used to trace them, and quite the high-ranking ones at that.

 

It all started by looking for that young youkai.

 

Yet, he got a bunch of troubles on his table but he hasn't found Nora yet.

 

He had sent Grayfia to check if he was taken by any patrol, and that was going to take some time as she would have to go personally if Grayfia wanted a real confirmation instead of a half-assed one.

 

--------------------------------

 

Grayfia's POV

 

Starting from the description given by the Nekomata sisters she got. Grayfia began looking for the particular patrol team that had taken Nora.

 

It did not take too much effort to trace them, but when she arrived on the site, those people had apparently been sent to solve certain issues in different parts of the city where they were.

 

It took a bit of restraining from part to not simply lash out at that lame excuse. But that was not really the reason why she was here so it was something she would take care of later.

 

Directly asking for any clue about Nora, there was apparently no one that fitted that name or description in the patrol's base.

 

As she was being taken for a fool twice, Grayfia did not take it nicely this time. So she began with a slightly rough questioning, using the authority of the Maou along with a little pressure of her demonic power to kindly remind the man who was not cooperating that he should answer truthfully. Thankfully, this time she was able to hear what she wanted, that said, it was not exactly good news.

 

He had been here until not long ago, but he was directly locked behind bars using pathetically excuses. It really angered her when she heard it. Her demonic power leaked to the point that the man fainted on the spot.

 

Informing Sirzechs, she was told to inform their other cooperator in this situation to lend a hand.

 

The prison that Nora was taken to was a tricky place as many political prisoners were locked up there. Going there out of the blue could bring many repercussions so more help (authority was needed).

 

...

...

...

 

After finally calming down her indignant friend who got angry at that child's situation, both decided to meet at the prison.

 

For someone who believes in justice like her, Nora's situation puts her in a bad mood. But she also knows that it would be reckless to act without thinking so they were preparing the proper procedures.

 

"I better hurry, Serafall is waiting..." Grayfia teleported to the next location she had to go.

 

-----------------------------

 

MC's POV

 

"So, you are telling me that we should save the wardens just because your guts are telling you to?" I asked in an uncertain tone.

 

I don't particularly mind helping those guys as I am not enjoying the sight of them being ganged on, no, I don't really find pleasing a situation where violence is used mindlessly itself. But intervening now would only change the target of the prisoners from them to me.

 

"This uprising will be taken care of soon, most likely. At that time, they will turn their hostility on the prisoners like you have no idea, but if we lend a hand, they would even change the place of our cells to a more cozy location." The old man explained to me while he rubbed his hands together and had a rather crafty expression on his face.

 

Yeah, I sort of imagined that he was not going to help out of kindness. However, his guts again?

 

"Are you nuts? Even then, we would be making an enemy of those guys. I don't know how things work here, but in jail, you should never make enemies, that much I know. Waiting quietly would be better." I exclaimed.

 

I might've gotten some of my Ki back, but I was not at my top form. Until not long ago I was fighting non-stop to escape that facility. My body has recovered due to my continuous caring using Senjutsu, but that is not enough.

 

*Sigh*

 

"You are not thinking things through; you don't know enough of this place. Whom you should be afraid are the wardens not the prisoners. There are few of those guys who come to this floor to relieve stress by harming the first unlucky guy they find. We should take this opportunity to get better treatment while we can." The old man explained again.

 

I can't deny anything he just said as it happened in my old world a lot. There was sometimes news on the TV about it. And I can only imagine that in this place it would be worse for some. The guys who sent me here won't just throw me here to let me rot. They probably have other things in mind.

 

In the end, I was convinced.

 

Hopefully, I won't regret this later.

 

...

...

...

 

 

"Get down!" I yelled before throwing Kashas at the prisoners. It felt somewhat different from how I usually create them but I had already sent the attack flying.

 

I don't know how strong those guys are for real, they don't feel as strong as Nil or the queen of Naberius, but it would be stupid to underestimate them just for that.

 

The Kashas quickly hit the guys on the other part of the group that was attacking the wardens. Even if my yell worked that intended to be as a warning for the wardens ended up warning the prisoners too, not everyone would be able to evade as they were gathered together.

 

"What is this!?"

 

"Hey, he just busted into flames!"

 

"Move it! I don't want to burn as well!"

 

A strange thing happened though, my attack was more powerful than before. The prisoners I hit had no chance to resist before being burned.

 

It was absurd, even if I aimed at their heads, or if I did not hold back. It was way too powerful, but I will question it later, for now-

 

I threw a few more Kashas before the prisoners scattered in different directions.

 

The power of a group is actually amazing. Together they just act tough, but at a small amount of danger they can't respond easily and they scatter like flies.

 

No, I can see several individuals have stayed behind watching me cautiously.

 

"How about stopping right there, I am pacifist so I would prefer if you just left quietly." I basically yelled so that they all heard me.

 

They all shared a glance before one of the prisoners spoke.

 

"Why are you interfering? Who are you? I don't recall this place being a kindergarten."

 

The speaker was a tough-looking guy, and from his characteristics, I can see that he is probably a Youkai, with raccoon ears and tail that matched it. He seemed like a Youkai, but it did not make us friends just because we are of the same kind. The proof was that he was glaring at me without even a hint of goodwill.

 

Rolling my eyes at his choice of words, I kept my guard up while I considered what I should say.

 

"It doesn't matter who I am. I just happen to have some business to sort with those people (devils) over there. It would be better if you just leave quietly." I said while creating more Kashas.

 

As expected he-

 

"Are you supposed to be some big shot? You don't understand how things work around here. I don't care about your bus-AAAAAAAARGH."

 

Not interested in hearing the rest of his words, I just attacked and then threw my body to one side to evade the magic (?) attacks that were thrown at me.

 

The momentary peace that had appeared after the group of prisoners dispersed had ended pretty quickly. The wardens who finally got a breather had to start fighting again.

 

I just kept doing my thing without minding them. That tanuki guy actually did not die in one hit like the others after receiving a direct hit from my Kasha, which made me wonder if he survived because he was using Touki or Senjutsu to protect himself, or my attack that ended those guys before was just a lucky strike.

 

"You guys catch that runt for me! Argh!"

 

Covering the part of his face where the Kasha landed, the guy just ordered that and some of the prisoners who seemed to follow his words started to surround me.

 

I, of course, did not stay idle.

 

Using the limited Youjutsu spells I knew, I just kept sending fireballs and icicles at them until I made an opening in their ranks, which I used to avoid their surrounding attempt.

 

Now I had the option to join the wardens' fight and then take care of these guys with them or take care of these guys on my own.

 

I went along with the idea of a joint attack. It was better to lessen the pressure on my side.

 

...

...

...

 

 

The fight ended faster than I thought after I collaborated with the wardens. But the prisoners were not captured or restrained, instead, they were killed. It was a little hypocrite of me to say this after having done the same; however, was that a good thing to do judging from their standing?

 

It was not my place to judge though.

 

Instead, I observed as the wardens tried to use some sort of device to communicate with someone a distance away from me. Keeping my distance is something I thought I should do as I am not sure if they would start attacking me. My mind was working in parallel as I recalled the fight from just now.

 

No matter how I think it, something was out of place with my Kasha. The energy I felt circulating before in my body as result of the experiments is what I considered demonic energy. That b*stard did say something about becoming a devil so that is probably it.

 

At the facility I felt nothing different... but now? I am sensing it acting on its own, although that does not make sense. I don't think demonic power has that kind of effect... No, it could be something else he did?

 

I need more time to make a proper diagnostic of my current state. To begin with, I had no time to do so far.

 

"Oh, Kid! You are pretty good. You took care of those guys easily." A carefree voice muttered, coming from behind me.

 

There is no need to guess.

 

"As soon as I attacked the first guy you suddenly disappeared, though they got you." I replied to that voice's owner harshly.

 

This guy truly left me alone as soon as I started to fight. He was just beside me and then he just left when I was not looking.

 

"Hahaha, don't be too harsh on this old man. I am not really the fighter type, but you, my friend, are something else. Could it be that you are not really a kid? Oh, I have heard of some youkais who remain in child-like appearance for pretty much all their life so maybe..." The old man scrutinized me with his eyes.

 

Can I beat this guy?

 

"Stop with the pointless chatting. I can see that you are just changing the subject. Just forget about it. We have something else to take care of. Those guys..." I spoke as I pointed at the wardens who seemed to have finished communicating using the device.

 

Not sure what's the plan now.

 

"Ha! Leave this to me! Here is where I show you my worth!" The old man exclaimed righteously and full of confidence before walking in the direction of the wardens.

 

If I leave this to such an unreliable guy, won't things go south quickly?

 

...

...

...

 

 

Luckily, they seemed to have reached an agreement after exchanging some words.

 

I was prepared to have some magic thrown at me, but things went well. They apparently have a good relationship with the old man so right now we are moving together as a group, although we still keep our distance from each other.

 

We were not given a detailed explanation, but luckily (?) not all prisoners were released from their restrains so we won't have to fight the whole prison population if we stand with the wardens.

 

A riot occurred and things escalated until this point, and that is all we were told. I am not exactly happy with that half-assed explanation so I have been stealthily taking glances everywhere using my ability, but I don't have a full grasp of this place so it is taking time to look for the origin of this situation.

 

We are supposed to regroup with another group of wardens that is close by, well, this place is not exactly small so it is taking a while to just walk there, and we are moving slowly to avoid rushing right into any ambush waiting for us, courtesy of the prisoners.

 

I have only one thing I have to complain about putting aside my crappy situation and that is I am hungry.

 

...

...

...

 

 

There were a couple of fights with the prisoners but it was easily taken care of by the wardens. I had no chance to act, which was fine by me as I focused on refilling my Ki reserves.

 

No matter what, unless the number is too large, the wardens have the advantage as they are fully equipped, and the prisoners are not really organized.

 

Still, I find it strange that we have found hardly any prisoners on our route.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Minutes later, I was able to locate what I believe is the cause of the small number of prisoners.

 

They broke out from the area we are in and have moved to another one. The results were not something I wish to go into many details about, but I will only say that... those other guys were not released from their restraints and stood no chance.

 

...

...

...

 

At some point, we found the group we were supposed to regroup with. They apparently were able to hold as they were a larger group and were far from the violent prisoners.

 

Things were going smoothly... too smoothly.

 

"Old man, Don't you think that everything has been going a little 'too smoothly'?" I asked in a low voice at a good distance from the guards.

 

Noting my tone, the old man understood what I was trying to do so he lowered his voice when he replied.

 

"It is indeed strange. For a riot, everything seems rather tame. Things appear to be a tad bit too different from what I have seen before regarding the guys locked here. Riots start with the dissatisfaction of some people and scale-out of proportions in an uncontrolled manner, but this is too strange. Whatever it is, it looks like someone is taking care of guiding the 'uncontrolled' prisoners." The old man spoke with a pondering expression.

 

Hmmm, that doesn't good for our side, does it?.

 

An uncontrolled crowd is dangerous, and one of prisoners is even worse.

 

*Sigh*

 

This is going to be hard.

 

...

...

...

 

 

Some neutral, some unfriendly, I received different kinds of gazes from the wardens as we began moving again.

 

However, my mind was preoccupied with something else to actually care about. I have been keeping an eye on that crowd of prisoners and they just kept breaking havoc as they move, although I can see that they are not just going to places at random. They have taken some of the powerless and restrained prisoners with them. I happened to recognize one of those guys, when I was being taken to my cell, I saw that same guy, the fat prisoner who looked at me arrogantly in contempt, being dragged along with some other familiar faces.

 

A few ideas come to mind, for example, they plan to use them as meat shields. Nah.

 

This is more like, taking important-looking prisoners to use them as bargain chips if things don't go as they expected them to. Sounds more like it if they are nobles., well, not my problem anyways. They can drag those guys all they want, but this is the Devils' problem although the wardens might hesitate.

 

...

...

...

 

 

The mood couldn't be more somber after the wardens received a transmission a few seconds ago.

 

I was able to hear most of the transmission and I can sympathize with these guys a little.

 

The instructions they were given are no different from a death sentence depending on how things develop later.

 

Not only they were ordered to save as many of those prisoners as they can, they were also tasked with keeping the prisoners locked on this floor. As the worst situation happened here, it would be terrible to let the prisoners go higher and start another riot on the upper floor or worse, the lower floors.

 

Apparently, there are some really dangerous guys down there, and while they are currently still locked, if the crowd of prisoners ended releasing them from their restraints as well, they could actually break out of this prison.

 

I wonder, is it that easy?

 

"There is something I don't understand. How would those guys release other prisoners, no, to begin with, how did they take these off?" I inquired as I pointed my neck.

 

The only person who was willing to say a word about was, of course, the old man.

 

"I don't know how they did that, it is actually a complicated process from what I have learned. You can't just release all the prisoners from one place, and you can't expect to find that control room on the same floor either." The old man explained as he kept paying attention to the warden's movements.

 

"Old man, you sure know a lot. Don't tell me that you have been...?" I asked doubtfully.

 

It seems like he-

 

"*Cough* I have not been thinking of escaping this place, I am such a law-abiding person. How could I?" The old man avoided looking into my eyes.

 

Yeah, that pretty much confirms it.

 

"I don't think you can call yourself a law-abiding person while in prison though..." I said.

 

No matter how you look at it, from what he said he did around the time of the arrest... while it was not the proper procedure, he was still committing crimes. Well, that is what he said at least.

 

"You always have to say something to get the last word..." The old man muttered in a tired tone.

 

Mmmmm.

 

"Yes." I replied.

 

...

...

...

 

 

For now, I went along with the wardens. As long as I kept myself behind and don't engage too much in a fight. I should be ok.

 

Something is bothering me though.

 

Using the old man's words as a guide, I began looking for this floor's control room, but it had been long busted from what I saw.

 

The question is if this releases prisoners, why did the wardens...? No, why have the wardens not received any kind of warning? Different from what I expected, their transmitter is being quiet.

 

Yeah, that can't be a good sign.

You can find story with these keywords: Highschool DxD: A new opportunity, Read Highschool DxD: A new opportunity, Highschool DxD: A new opportunity novel, Highschool DxD: A new opportunity book, Highschool DxD: A new opportunity story, Highschool DxD: A new opportunity full, Highschool DxD: A new opportunity Latest Chapter